Mo Farah’s Jet-Setting Ways

Leading the life of a long-distance runner can be taxing. Take Britain’s world champion, Mo Farah. The Somali-born runner spends an extraordinary amount of time away from his family.

Farah currently trains in Oregon under coach Alberto Salazar. His wife, Tania, and daughter, Rihanna, both live there presently, but the 28-year-old Farah hasn’t seen them in five weeks.

“I’ve not seen them for a while and it’s hard but you get used to it,” Farah admits. “I won’t see them in Boston and then I’m straight off to Albuquerque. In fact, the next time I’ll see them is when I race in Birmingham [on February 19th].”

Farah contends that he lives his life on phonecards and Skype and says that running comes first right now.

“I’m living out of suitcases,” he says. “It’s difficult as an athlete not being in one place and just training. Of course it’s nice to be around your family but that’s how it is.”

Duncan Larkin

Duncan Larkin is a freelance journalist and author who’s been covering the sport of running for over a decade. He’s run 2:32 in the marathon and won the Himalayan 100-Mile Stage Race in 2007. He wrote the book RUN SIMPLE, and coaches runners of all abilities.
You can learn more about him here: http://roadsmillslaps.tumblr.com/about